Tri-Ed Tutoring

Students often struggle with identifying the subject of a sentence. Check out our latest video on YouTube for tips on how to approach subject verb agreement questions on the SAT.

Subject Verb Agreement Join the head of Tri-ed Tutoring in learning the basics to subject verb agreement!

For the first time in a year, College Board finally released a new practice test: Practice Test 11! I know juniors that are prepping for the March SAT have been anxiously waiting for more material to use for prep.

If you are a junior and have already taken the other tests available in Bluebook, take this practice test now to give yourself a couple of weeks to identify any finaI weak areas to review before March. If you are just starting your SAT prep journey, use the earlier tests first. The more recently released tests are usually the closest to the real thing so you'll want to save Test 11 for close to your SAT date.

Need more direction? Contact Tri-Ed Tutoring!

As I continue my reflection of teachers, I think about those teachers that you don’t appreciate until much later in life. For me, that teacher was Ms. Emilienburg, my 8th grade English teacher. At 14 years old, I had the gift of gab and was chronically late for her class due to spending a bit too much time chatting by my locker. After three tardies and more than a few warnings, she wrote me a referral, and I got a trip to the principal’s office. It was the only referral I ever received. I thought she was such a stickler curmudgeon and was absolutely outraged that I got a (very much deserved) referral!

She wasn’t just a stickler about punctuality, though; she also had incredibly high expectations of our writing skills. She drilled grammar and punctuation rules into us and was a very harsh grader of essays. At the time, I thought she was unfair. Now, I teach students the rules of grammar and punctuation every day. When I think about how I can write properly without grammar and spell check or when I return to a text message to correct the punctuation, I always think of Ms. Emilienburg and silently send gratitude to a teacher that had higher expectations of me than I had of myself!

Did you have a teacher, tutor, or coach that you really disliked at the time but are now grateful for?

The holiday season always feels like a time of reflection for me. The December SAT was last weekend, and we had many students that took the test. Although we haven’t received the results yet, I’ve already heard one of my favorite comments from some of the parents of these students: “I have seen his confidence improve which has helped beyond this exam.” Yes, we are preparing for the SAT but, often, the prep has more benefits than just a better score on a test. It made me start thinking of the teachers, tutors, and coaches throughout my life that really made an impact beyond just teaching me a subject in school.

One teacher that comes to mind for me is Ms. Lovern, my first-grade teacher. She was a new teacher at the time. I was a talkative, precocious child. I’m sure I made her life more difficult because I would speed through my work and then talk and distract all the kids around me. Luckily for me, she saw me as an intelligent child that needed more challenge, rather than just a behavior problem in class. She pushed for me to get more work and recommended me for additional services for enrichment. I still think of her fondly so many years later.

What teachers, tutors, or adults have had an impact on your life?

Need help preparing for the SAT? Learn the tricks you need for each question type in our next small group SAT prep class at Battlefield High School. See the full schedule and register at https://tri-edtutoring.com/small-group-classes/

Mark your calendars — fall 2025 brings several major college and career fairs across Arlington, Fairfax, and Prince William counties. Whether your student is beginning to explore or ready to dive deep into applications, these fairs are a great resource. More details can be found in our latest blog: https://tri-edtutoring.com/upcoming-college-fairs-in-northern-virginia-fall-2025/

Need help improving SAT/ACT scores or finalizing the college essay? Contact us today!

Did everyone survive the first week or two of school? My boys are finishing up their second week of school with a four day weekend ahead of them.

The start of this school year was bittersweet for me personally. Last week, I sent my youngest to kindergarten at the “big school”. He has been so ready to join his big brother, and he was so happy to have big brother walk him to class (that’s them in the picture!). I was so happy and relieved to see how well he adjusted to the first two weeks, but I also found myself getting sucked into photo memories of his baby pictures and feeling a twinge of sadness that the baby and preschool years are fully behind me.

Whether you are sending your student off to kindergarten, college, or somewhere in between, I hope the beginning of the year is off to a good start! Wherever you are in your academic journey, we are here to support you!

When should you start SAT or ACT prep? At least 10 weeks before test day!
Save this post & plan ahead! 📝✨
📩 DM us to schedule your summer or fall prep. Group SAT classes and 1:1 SAT/ACT Prep available. Registration for the next SAT class that begins on July 8 can be found here: https://tri-edtutoring.com/small-group-classes/

Although it can be a relief to many students to know that there are so many test-optional colleges to which to apply, the variety of different policies across colleges can also be overwhelming. Be sure to keep a tracker of the test policy for each school. The ACT made the science section optional. However, make sure to check the requirements at each college you are applying to. For example, Boston University recently announced that, if students choose to submit ACT scores, they must submit the optional science section as well.

Here is the policy on the Boston University admissions page:
"For the ACT, BU will only accept ACT scores which include the Science subsection; the Writing subsection continues to remain optional. We recalculate a new composite score using the highest score from each section, regardless of test date."